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28 March 2015

Our first three weeks

Hi. I've lost track of time somewhere in the middle.. In between depressing pumping session, spending time with Meredith and trying to keep up with being a human being myself thus having to still do things like eating, brushing my teeth, drinking enough water and putting food in my mouth when i get signals that i am too hungry. Becox hunger alone is not enough for me to drop something i am doing to go sit down and have something to eat. Most of the time i feel light-headed or headache and i'd be like.. Oh okay, time to down some food to keep going.

There's plenty of food in the house. Two meals a day from Thomson's confinement food delivered, delivered to my doorstep twice a day. And then there's fruits and bread and hot beverages Josh got for me. I just can't find a time to get to it sometimes.

A good example of my 3 hour cycle when i'm on shift would be.. 45 minutes to an hour to feed the baby, 25 minutes to pump including preparation, and then on a good shift i can grab some sleep after some leisure surfing.

Other time after a shower / after meal.. It's about time to pump / feed the baby again.

Do i enjoy time spent with her? YES. A 100%. Each time she smiles.. Or when she's just sound asleep and satisfied.. I smile. Each time she is not squirming in discomfort.. I thank god.

But do i enjoy everything else? No. I dread the idea of having to eat, food, medication and supplement. Can't i just run on constant power source? Plug me in on the power socket! I just wanna keep going, without feeling hungry or sleepy? I procrastinate each time i have to take off my top and my maternity bra and then change into my hands-free pumping bra to pump milk that would only fill half of Meredith's per meal. I find that highly inefficient. And i hate inefficiency. I hate.

People who keep preaching about how wonderful breastfeeding journey has obviously left out the part where they feel like shit if they can't produce enough milk.. OR if they have short nipples.

Which leads to the baby not wanting to latch in peace becox she has to suckle very hard.

And then cause the mum to have cracked and bleeding nipples.

Which leads the mum having to pump and live her life on a 3 hour cycle. Of which if you include being a human being, sometimes there's only less than 1 hour to sleep in each cycle and other cycles, you just don't sleep lol. And the rest of the cycles, you spend all your time googling what's wrong with you and your breastmilk, why are you not getting it, why you simply cannot make it right.

And then they probably also left out the part where if you are finally settling in.. You still might face other difficulties like engorgement where your boobs look really nice for half a day, full, perky and all but then later it will shoot fire sensation all the way to your nipples, your boobs will harden so bad you can't even move your arms, and you can't sleep on your side becox any movement to the boobs is like someone jabbing your boobs with a hammer when you are having pre-menstrual sore boobs X 10 soreness level.

And then if you face engorgement you can either take pills to get it over and done with and stop breastfeeding, or you just deal with the engorgement for a few days before your milk supply stops FOREVER.. Until you have the next child lah lol.

OR you can ask for a engorgement massage which hurts like a big fat bitch but it will soften your boobs and let you be able to pump / latch better.

So if you still think you wanna breastfeed by this point, you simply carry on in good faith. If everything goes well, congrats.

If not.. I guess that's where my story continues. LOL #toughluck with breastfeeding but i'm carrying on not becox i still believe when people say "Breastfeeding is a wonderful journey" by the way whoever tells me that now will get a slap across the face + pinch and twist on her nipple until ohr-chair in my imagination okay sorry but it is the only way to make me feel better thank you LOL.

I am simply continuing of course becox they say breast milk has antibodies and it's good for the baby, and also cox i've been through 4 sessions of boobs engorgement massage (it gets more tolerable after the second session) and the first two times was so painful, i am not going to let the pain i endured to go to waste.

So.. What do i look forward to now? I only look forward to my baby being able to latch when she's older by a bit and gets stronger at suckling. This way i will feel more purpose in breastfeeding. This is the only motivation i have now for me to keep pumping. But honestly, even that i'm not sure if it will happen. But hey, like i said.. I simply carry on in good faith so.. Good luck to me.

Here's what i manage to capture in the most chaotic three weeks of my life..

Discharge from Thomson Medical and got home with Si Jie, Michelle and Monkey. They are here to help Josh and i settle in with the baby. This is the hardest to fix baby bouncer ever haha.

While they fix up the bouncer.. Obsessive godma attacks again haha. Creepy, that face.

Introducing Meredith to her furry siblings hahaha. They were in their room for a while when there's guests cox they go CRAZY hyper with guests.

Tiffany is super duper curious about Meredith one! She's very good with her paws so kept trying to paw Meredith omg haha.

Drago don't really dare to go near Meredith initially. And will run away to hide or flip his ears back if she cries. I guess her crying is too loud for Drago also haha.

Tiffany REALLY wants to play with her but i guess not yet O.O Maybe when she's slightly older!

Everyone chilling. The first day Tiffany followed Meredith and Josh EVERYWHERE. Bedroom, living room, kitchen, everywhere. I think she don't wanna lose her place as daddy's favourite haha!

Swaddled her in for her nap after milk.

As big as the bolsters haha. This shall be her growth guide haha.

Dinner time.. Eating with her in my arms becox i can. Hahaha. When she's still 2.9kg.

Deliveries kept coming in through out the first week omg. Apart from the ones sent to the hospital, these are some that came in the first day we got home. Thank you everyone!!! Sorry if i didn't manage to snap pictures of them all! But thank you so much for sending us sweet thoughts!

From the best party and event planner Assemble Happinest and Givefun! They are working together on Meredith's first month celebration! Very excited about it! =DDD

Second day morning.. Daddy so tired until fall asleep at his work desk with baby haha.

Lookie which baby came to visit!!! =D BB Junya with Cheesie!!! They happen to be in town with the dad on business trip so just nice pop by to see Meredith!!! How's his outfit? Josh got them long ago HAHAHA it's supposed to be a mini-Josh outfit.

Told Cheesie that i wanna 许配 Meredith to Junya becox he is half-Japanese hahaha! Junya be like "Alright i have a straw as 定情之物. Here you go Mere chan.." Next he proceed to pull off her blanket LOL. Dating game starts young.

What face is this Meredith? Ugly lah~!! Haha.

"岳母大人~" Junya calling out to me hahaha. No lah he was reaching for the camera.

Night time.. Super duper tired as you can see from the dark eye rings but still on a high of finally having a newborn that belongs to us =)))

Eu Yan Sang sent over a hamper with a post-natal kit with all the ingredients you'd need to brew soup etc! Thank you Eu Yan Sang!

Next day.. Selfie with my baby~ =D At this point i wasn't getting engorged yet but it was building up.

Baby 笑到酱勉强?

Later in the day my cracked nipples that were bleeding 1.5 day ago was healing up so i tried to pump.

Thank god the Philips AVENT Comfort Double electric breast pump is one of the most comfortable ones available and also there's a massage cushion pad so i think it didn't feel painful while pumping becox i really don't think my engorged boobs could take anymore stress hahaha.

The whole time i couldn't express a single bit of milk while trying to use hand express.. I guess cox it was painful to even touch my boobs haha.

But after 2 minutes of gentle stimulation with the pump.. I saw this and i was like.. OMG IS IT WATER OR IS IT REALLY MILK?!?!?!?! AM I MAKING MILK FINALLY?!?!?!?!?! So i sent my girlfriend this picture and ask her if it's milk! She said yes~!!!! AFFIRMATION, YES!!!

But i'm still in a mess cox the engorgement was already happening. I only wished i started using the pump earlier. Before i even got engorgement problem. Becox everything would have been so much smoother. But no point crying over stuck milk i guess LOL. I remember i was tearing up with my sister Niao Niao sitting by my side and patting my shoulder while i try to work things out with my boobs by gently massage and all. Quite a sad sight..

So the next few days consecutively i didn't document anything simply becox i called the breast engorgement masseur over and all i can is.. In my head i punched her a lot of times becox it hurts so badly but in my heart i cannot thank her more than enough. Becox after she cleared my engorgement..

I manage to pump this packet of my sweat and blood though it's really just milk lah haha. So very thankful even though it's barely enough to make Meredith's snack hahaha. She was on 60ml/feed.

Somehow one night i got blocked duct again though not feeling as bad as when it first happened, it still hurts and i was scared that it will lead to engorgement again becox i don't think i can go through the painful massage again and just the thought of it made me cry so badly.

And i was feeling so warm and uncomfortable that night from rashes around my nipples (omg sorry, tmi lolol but hey, motherhood knows no shyness to private parts LOL, vjj becomes a pathway and boobs become food wth). and with the recovering wound and swollen legs from water retention and from the achey feeling from the epidural jab etc.

All these put together.. I just keep breaking down into tears. And then i look at Josh so beaten and tired from doing everything alone and i remember thinking.. "Is this how our lives are gonna be from now on? It is horrible. I can't do it."

I told Josh i regret.. Regret not hiring a confinement nanny. Becox now he has to shoulder it all by himself cox i am most comfortable in bed. And i have to rest my legs cox the swelling from water retention got even worst than when i was pregnant.

So i was sobbing uncontrollably and i ask him if the baby and me should move to a confinement centre for a month. He got angry and say he enjoys doing everything even if it's a little tiring becox he say having a confinement nanny means we will miss moments like..

This.. ='))))

Little terror just had her milk and was having a milk high or something haha. Kept smiling and smiling. Josh say having a confinement nanny will mean that we miss these precious moments our baby reward us with for all the hard work.. Makes sense =')))

Actually i finally gave up and tell myself to STOP CRYING AND SEEK HELP. If not omg, every day and night i just break into tears thinking about my breastfeeding problems. Initially i thought the home massage i have will be good enough.

But i guess not. I really wanna let Meredith to be able to latch so i need a lot more milk if not she will feel pek chek suckling on like empty boobs lol. You know, it's something that if you cannot do as a first time mother, you feel inadequate.

Now i understand why there is be the type of mothers who preach it when they can produce good milk supply. Or preach it when they can breastfeed for a long time. And why they would keep talking as if that's their achievement of a lifetime lolol. If they do it naturally without having to face any obstacles, then they very lucky loh. If they do it out of willpower and have to overcome many obstacles to finally achieve good supply.. Then it's really a F-U in the faces of mothers who choose not to do it LOL. So either way, they deserve all the rights to preach it haha!

And i also fully understand why another bunch of mothers (like myself) will feel so annoyed by the above type of mother. Hahaha. We are the bunch of mothers who choose not to breastfeed / choose to give up after failure / give up as soon as possible / face a hell lot of problems with breastfeeding. So telling me how much milk you can produce so easily is like a FU in my face. Haha.

So you can tell i'm very disgruntled by the amount i'm producing for Meredith given the time and effort i've gone through. I mean c'mon, i'm not even obsessed in over-producing and stocking up etc. I just wanna produce enough for her every meal!!!

So we went on our first outing together! To go see Mrs Wong.

No joke. Tearful sleepless nights later, i look like crap hahaha.

My legs were still SUPER swollen as you can see. But nevertheless, OOTD time hahaha.

Josh handling the baby while i have my session with Mrs Wong..

She helped me and Meredith soooooo much omg. When Meredith was latching for that 5 minutes, i just burst into tears what the heck. I mean ALL THE TIME I SPENT WORRYING IN FEAR, CRYING IN DESPERATION AND FEELING DEPRESSED.......

When all i need is to seek professional help.

After meeting Mrs Wong i feel soooooo much better not just becox she found a way for things to work between Meredith and i but also for the emotional support T.T She let me understand that it's nothing personal. And that i am not alone T.T Many new mums face the same problems..

So we had a big hug and then i left her office in tears of joy lolol a bit dramatic ah me.

And then i bump into Stefanie Sun!!!!!! =OOO She is so nice and friendly in person omg.

With Mrs Wong =D

Went home and tried to latch the baby + pump with the instructions Mrs Wong gave me! Doing a whole lot better but still can be improved lah! Self-expectation hahah.

Went back for follow up checkup 3 days later and this baby put on 0.4 kg already haha.

Meredith was fussing with me and Mrs Wong took over and again.. She instantly calmed down wthhhhh! I AM THEN YOUR MOTHER LEH MEREDITH hahaha!

"Mommy why you get auntie Wong to overwrite me =_=" Haha.

After my consultation with Mrs Wong, i went to Thomson Chinese Medicine for post-natal massage to hlep shrink my uterus and also to rid water retention. It works like wonder T.T I should have started way earlier. Why do i always like to wait for things to be bad before i do something. That's Maya my therapist and the friendly ladies at TCM!

Went home and had a good nap. Woke up to this.. Haha. Josh really likes to play with her.

Not sure if it's meant to be a puppy or meant to be a what.

I guess Josh is not the only one who had a hard time taking care of Meredith hahaha.

My baby is so tiny haha. "AHH I LOVE TO WATCH THEM TV SHOWS"

"NUUUU DON'T TAKE IT AWAY FROM MEEE"

Just chillin' in bed haha!

On 17th of March.. I asked for Josh help to do the unthinkable omggg..

I was feeling better finally EXCEPT i have a ONE freaking clog duct *RAGE*

This one goddamn one just keep getting blocked even after Maya help me massage it off and clear it with spurting milk haha. So i know to latch it off is the best way but Meredith cannot take my instruction on where to place her chin right.. And her suction is not that strong yet..

So..

Yeah. Josh had to help me before it gets worst O______O

He did and i shall spare you the details of the act but right after we're done..

He rushed into the bathroom and later i saw him squatting beside the toilet bowl..

Someone else is getting the best of all worlds though. Milk coma again.. Haha.

Hi. Who's the white swan?

For this face i will endure all her temper what the heck. Michelle say she is very happy Meredith's temper is worst than mine hahaha she say "老天派她来收你" lolol. Thanks, my bff. Lol!

Don't need act cute anymore! What you want say!

Another weekend = Family time!!! =DD My parents came with Ah Bong and my sisters WITH..

MY FAVOURITE YUROUUUUU!!! Finally seeing her after so long T__T She kept trying to tell me stories she made up and won't allow me to talk to others haha. Maximising our time together ah =)))

She kept wanting to go in to mix with Drago and Tiffany haha but end up actually she very kiasi one. So Ah Bong gotta be her guardian haha.

That night someone was very happy. Okay lah you happy i happy, boss.

Daddy and baby nap time.. =)

And the next day.. My family come again T.T I am so happy when they come over.. Reminds me of what's normal and let me look forward to spending time with them like before.. Confinement please be over soon!!! =(

Dear Meredith, today daddy and mommy help you pick out your first ever big time pi sai. Lol. Thank you for letting me share the joy. Next time when you grow up, you will experience this super-shiok thing to do yourself.. It is your mommy's favourite thing to do =D Hahah.

And when i'm out for my post-natal massage.. Josh does this with Meredith at home.. If i were him, anytime i can, i will just wanna knock out and sleep. So i don't know where he find the time haha.

Oh gosh.. I have become that kind of parent.. HAHA. The kind who thinks every picture of my child is cute O.O SORRY!!! I just have no time to groom myself yet!!! After confinement i will!

Haha. I hope?

A video that is super put-together. I will never ever ever ever forget all the days and nights in the first two weeks where i spend crying and smiling. And most of all, i never wanna forget how.. Magical Meredith look in the first few weeks since she was born.. Omg mummy love you so much.

BUT..

OMG her temperament i cannot =OOO

She is sooooooo quick-tempered and loud and impatient. Totally like her mum =__="

When i look at her, i see myself trapped in a helpless little body haha.

Hey there.. totally understand your are going through, the frustration the emotional roller coaster. I gave birth just 7 months ago but I rem every single pain so vividly...from labour to bfeeding dramas.

You can try fenugreek pills, lactating cookies (think Pupsik Studio has) to increase your milk supply. And your body must be well-rested to produce milk, so ensure you take regular naps. Very important! Stay strong!

It's only like the 4th or 5th month then I finally got the hang of stuff and by the 6th month I realised it is worth bfeeding for the benefit of baby. SO just have to Jiaaaayouuuu! I rem feeling so shitty for 3 months about this whole post-natal after effects.

I also have a newborn and this is my second baby. I also have low supply breastmilk. Seeking help, googling, reading books, forums late at night trying to figure out what's wrong with me and why I cannot do the most natural thing for my baby. I envy all the mothers who have months of supply stocked up for their baby.

To begin with my baby cannot latch well so I'm pumping exclusively. Sleepless nights, sore nipples, blocked ducts and burning sensation and all the discomfort associated with breastfeeding problems I can totally relate.

Finally I found these methods helpful for me, maybe you can give it a try and see it helps.

Pump every 3 hours and after hand express to totally clear boobs, at the same time massage and try to relax and drink lots of water.

While pumping Google, fb, Ig etc do not look at the output and don't stress about it.

Drink tons of liquid. Tea, soup water red date tea etc.

Most importantly SLEEP. Well rested will let your body produce more milk.

Don't feel discouraged and alone. With my first child I wanted to give up after 2 weeks of pain and distress. With the help and encourage from my husband I managed to breastfeed for 7 months. And now I'm planning to do the same with my second child.

Just know that all the pain and hard work will pass. It's all worth it. Hang in there!

I have a 1 year old baby boy. When he was born my husband and I made a decision not to have a confinement nanny too because we were not comfortable with the idea of s stranger living with us in such close quarters. My parents are no longer around, neither is his mum. We were really on our own. My best friend (aside from my husband, angel in disguise) was Google and the lactation consultant from Gleneagles. Breastfeeding was the toughest thing I ever had to do in my life. But now, my baby boy is just over a year old. And as I read what you wrote, I wanted to tell you this. The first 3 months is the worst. And in the first 3 months, the first 3 weeks is absolute hell. But it all gets better. Really. Mother gets wiser, baby gets bigger. Baby settles into a schedule and there will be time to bathe and time to eat. And no, you won't need to choose between the two. Clothes start fitting again. Hair stops falling. You begin to feel more human. One day you will bring the baby out on your own and realise that the fear of doing so is gone. You learn to breath normally again. Breastfeeding is still a bitch and I still want to slap the shit out of anyone who gives me unsolicited comments on it. But everything else gets better. So hang in there. I know sometimes it seems like life has changed 180 degrees but there is a lot of happiness in changes like this. You will get there. One baby step at a time.

I was once in the same tough spot that you're in now(seems like forever ago even though my baby is only 2yrs now) and let me just say..you are the best mom your baby willl ever have or want!! Take all the help you can get and heal fast so you can be back to your smiley self :) the first year will pass before you blink!

Just hang in there! Will pray for things to get smoother for you soon..

I was once in the same tough spot that you're in now(seems like forever ago even though my baby is only 2yrs now) and let me just say..you are the best mom your baby willl ever have or want!! Take all the help you can get and heal fast so you can be back to your smiley self :) the first year will pass before you blink!

Just hang in there! Will pray for things to get smoother for you soon..

After seeing your video i felt so touched and i believe you're a very noble mother who endures through the pain just for your baby. This is something very respectful about you:) Everytime you breakdown, remember that you're a brave one who never gives up because you know at the end of the day you know its worth it yea?:> I hope to see more photos of Meredith on insta and your blog as well as happy vlogs from you and baby! Things will get better trust me, 明天一定会更好☺️

Hi qiuqiu, congratulation on you newborn little princess :) Gone through your blog post, don't give yourself too much pressure on producing breastmilk. I encountered the same problem last time, my little baby girl keep crying and fussy because she's not getting enough breastmilk from me. My confinement lady was giving me pressure, asking me to drink lots of soups, telling me not to eat ginger, wine and pump milk each 2 hours even at midnight. I was so stressful googling all the information online bout how to produce more breastmilk. My husband knew I was giving pressure to myself so he told me I did lots of sacrifice for giving birth, breastmilk is good for baby but there's an option for giving formula milk. Breastmilk is not full for baby compare to formula milk, the thickness is depends on in individual mom. Formula milk can last for 3 hours each feed while breastmilk can last only 45mins to an hour. You're getting not enough rest and baby can't sleep long where you can't produce enough breastmilk. So I feel relief and I take lots of naps, eat well, sleep well and pump twice a day. Breastmilk is out but not much, top up with formula milk. I stopped breastfeed after 3 weeks, my baby now is healthy and gaining weight gradually. Recently WHO encourage mother to breastfeed their baby as long as they can because there are lots of people who's not giving the right milk to their babies as some giving condensed milk mix with water because they don't have money to buy formula milk and thought breastmilk is not full for baby. No one said formula is not good for baby, if got breastmilk can give if it's hard for you, don't stress yourself. Take care of your body, rest well, don't be so depressed.

Honestly, QiuQiu, thank you for keeping it really. Other mommy bloggers don't dare talk about their tough times let alone take picture of themselves right out of birth so a lot of their young readers think motherhood is super easy and fun....THANK YOU for the slap of reality haha.

I was curious - did your doctor say anything about your boob job affecting your ability to breast feed or does it not matter?

hi QiuQiu, I was tearing up while reading this entry because I went through something similar with my daughter (now 2). I had very low supply and basically tried every single soup, herb, food, pumping to boost it and even resorted to taking domperidone and even then I could only pump a measly few drops. Every day I would be in tears thinking why my stupid boobs can't make milk?? We had to bottle feed her formula since she was losing too much weight then she was throwing up like a fountain after the feeds which made me blame myself even more. Then after 1 month, I finally let it go, I didn't quit breastfeeding but just came to terms with my stupid boobs. I would breastfeed until empty (like 3min per side) then use sns or bottle with formula to top up. we continued this until she was 11 months old when she self weaned. My breastfeeding journey was not at all how I had envisioned but it doesn't matter, my baby is now 2 and very healthy (more than my friends babies that were exclusively breastfed), and also way more advanced than my stupid sil's daughter (she was one that bragged about her oversupply and joked about giving her leftover breastmilk since I couldn't make any, then laugh at my face.. oh the rage!!).

You will get through this and find something that will be right for you and Meredith. Jiayou!

I am the same condition with u in breastfeeding journey. Others comments about bf will only stressed me out, and i think like dont bully me, who doesnt want the best for their babies?? I have very2 short nipple on my left boob, that my 2YO boy sees it and said: 这边的断掉了. After full month or 40 days all of my babies can latch on it very well so dont worry. Just hang in there merrily!

I am the same condition with u in breastfeeding journey. Others comments about bf will only stressed me out, and i think like dont bully me, who doesnt want the best for their babies?? I have very2 short nipple on my left boob, that my 2YO boy sees it and said: 这边的断掉了. After full month or 40 days all of my babies can latch on it very well so dont worry. Just hang in there merrily!

Hang on there QiuQiu, it will get better! To be honest first few months was tough for me too, super sleep deprived n everyday was so busy till really ve no time to do anything else.. Friends who haven't given birth kept asking why I was so busy n I can sleep when the baby is asleep. Oh well, I guess only mother will understand the feeling. After the baby is asleep that's when we've the time to feed ourselves, pump, shower, n endless of googling etc. After the baby wakes, the cycle repeats! I totally feel u n understand where u r coming from! But trust me, it will get better after a while, tong for few months n u will start to enjoy parenting very soon. Jia you :)

Hey qiu qiu!congrats on ur newborn!she looks amazing!!! I had a similar case like urs too. I had inverted nipples and low supply of breastmilk.i cried soooo much for the first 3 months of my firstborn's live that my mother in law believed that i was having postpartum depression. My baby only put on 200 g on first month. ( butter also weighs more than her!) i tried all kinds of milk booster and had adverse reaction to one of the meds causing me ocular gyric crisis. The engorgement (cabbage helps a lot!),clogged milk ducts, i really didn't enjoy my breastfeeding journey honestly and even my confinement too. So yeah, i was more relaxed for my second baby.vowed not to be so stressed out with the pumping and all,i am still having low milk supply but i just make do with whatever i am able to.no point of stressing things i am not capable of. What i wanna say is, have fun!!!don't make the same mistake that i did. We all want the best for our babies but sometimes God gives us test like this so we would become greater mums for the babies (oh so i wish to believe). U are doing a super awesome job! I wish u all the best qiu qiu!!!!

Jia you qiuqiu.. Those who are mum have gone to this stage.. Blocked ducts are common in breastfeeding journey. When I have blocked ducts I apply hot gel pads or towel for a few mins on my breasts then followed by latching or pumping and massage the lump area where possible towards the direction of the nipple. After that I would continue to hand express to squeeze out the last bit of milk while massaging the block area moving towards the nipples.This may not clear in one session, so repeat the procedure for every session until the block duct is cleared. I was told by my massage lady nt to use cold cabbage leaves on engorged breast unless you wan to stop breastfeeding.

MHi Qiu Qiu, I am a new mum, my baby just turned 4 months. Same as the reader above I was told cabbage leaves were used to stop breastmilk. I was like you. I had to supplement baby with milk powder since she was discharged. Very disappointed with myself. Then my massage lady told me to use hot compress. It works like a charm. Use a small towel and soak with hot water. Must be damn hot (or as hot as your hands can handle). Lift up your arm and press the towel down covering your armpit and breasts. Within a min, the milk will come out... Try it! Not as painful as massage. I tried it before and cried like mad too... Jia you!!

Hi qiu qiu, one more thing to add.. Remember to massage your breasts before latching and pumping it helps with better flow. And your baby will not be able to latch well when you have hard nipples, u will need to soften it by massaging and releasing a bit of milk before latching..

You can do this, Qiu! You will get past this most difficult stage, which so many mothers have encountered, too! You are not alone, and you and Josh have a wonderful support network in your family and friends (and your readers, but I don't think we count.) Best of luck, and thank you for allowing us into your lives, especially during such a stressful and intense time! Good luck, beautiful family!

Hey QiuQiu, stay strong. The first week/month is always the toughest because there's so much to do and so little time to sleep! Also, your body is still recovering and you're still not feeling like yourself. But it always gets better.

I've been supporting you all the way since you got pregnant. Am so happy that little Mere is finally here, and such a little cutie pie!

Stay happy and positive! If you need advice, I see there are tons of readers here who are fans and who have dished out some good tips. All the best! :)

Hey qiuqiu, I'm a first time mum too - congrats to you and Josh :)I had really low supply - at 3 weeks I was pumping barely enough to cover the bottom of one Medela bottle. I stopped bf super early, at 6 weeks, and although I felt really really bad about it at first my son grew really well after that and was more calm and settled. You are really blessed to have Josh and of course Meredith. You're doing the best you can (don't think I could keep up with your pumping schedule) and if eventually you decide to stop bf early don't worry about what other people think - you're doing what's best for your lovely family!!

i bf for 10+ months but it was very very stressful, always crying, every 2 hour cycle of latching, bottle feeding and pumping. at six months we found out that my son had a posterior tongue tie and it was a contribution to my low milk supply.

just do your best and bf is way more then just making enough milk, it is a bond that only you and your baby share - my son is 15 months now and will still occasionally cheekily try to tug at my tops and say he a a baby!

Hang in there yo! I cried practically thru my whole confinement too. People kept telling me to give bottle/formula. But ya...my baby miraceously start latching around 2 months plus and has been latching since. So you never know - just keep trying! :) Meredith is so good at taking pictures and cute!

It's kinda sad how she used to be so pretty and now she looks weird.She is still pretty but something seems very off.This is why God created humans with PROPORTIONAL face and body features .If she hadn't had gotten any surgery done,I'm pretty sure she would be glowing and looking extremely beautiful now because the weight gain would have been evenly distributed around her face.Unfortunately it's irreversible and kinda pitiful how she's convincing herself that she loves how her face looks now.Of course she has to say that...if not it'll be embarrassing.Hopefully,no other ps will be done in the future because it's ruining her beauty.

- From youtube, it got 69 likes.

This is because you blocked me off your instagram and I didn't even said anything bad. So now you hurt, bitch.

You are absolutely the most real blogger i ever seen... thank you for revealing the truth about afterbirth, the dreadful nights, the bloated face and body,the engorged boobs,thank you 4 showing such a real side of Motherhood... keep it up and you will sure be a better mum den yesterday!! Fighting... ** btw, i m a mother of 3.

I was struggling in my first three weeks, I didn't know how exactly what to do. I kept on breastfeeding my little angel until three months. Now that I have to go back to work, I am trying to give her Infant Formula. It's a tough battle!

QiuQiu

Hello

A very typical lady who used to only LOVE to eat, sleep, shop and laugh. Now i learn how to also love a little someone unconditionally, everyday. Somehow being typical makes me special cox i am BUDGET BARBIE (where i be typical and buy the nicest things for the lowest price). You may drop me an email at qiutinger@gmail.com to reach me. My mailbox is Lim Ah Pin Road Post Office PO Box 635 Singapore 915402